Sewing machine



Oct. 10, 1944. K, A. STRITTER SEWING MACHINE Filed Jan. 8, 1943 2 Sheets-Sheet l Oct. 10, 1944. K s -f 2,359,803

SEWING MACHINE:

Filed Jan. 8, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented-Oct. 10, 1944 SEWING MACHINE Karl A. Stritter, Nahant, Mass., assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, flemington, N. 3., a corporation of New Jersey Application January 8, 1943, Serial No. 471,644

'1 Claims. (01. 112-52) 'This invention relates to improvements in sewing machines and, as herein disclosed, it relates especially to improvements in curved needle 'lockstitch sewing machines of the type disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,221,320, grantedNovember 12, 1940, upon application of aging function the strip guide tube acts in con junction with the back gage to determine the proper lengthwise angular relation of the bottom flange to the direction-of movement of the work feeding devices to insure that the seam will be sewn parallel to the edge of the flange at the heel Fred Ashworth, such machines having been used heretofore for the purpose of uniting the top or ton ue part and the vamp or side part of amoecasin One object of the present invention is to adapt machines of the type referred to for use in sewing an inseam to secure together the insole, the

and toe of the shoe. For this purpose the portion of the-delivery end of the guide tube which is nearest the operator is shaped and positioned upper and the welt in the manufacture of a welt shoe of novel construction such, for example, as

that disclosed in my pending application for United States Letters Patent, Serial No. 438,480, flied April 10, 1942.

- In welt shoes of the type just referred to the edge portions of the upper and the insole are beveled and temporarily secured together without the support of a last by means of cement so as to produce a feather edged joint more orless in the nature of a flange which extends entirely.

around the bottom of the upper anddnsole as.- sembly to receive the inseam stitches. The ma, chine disclosed in the above-mentioned patent is provided with a work table and a cooperating presser foot which are adapted to engage the rel atively sloping upper and lower-surfaces of the feather edged bottom or inseam flange, and with to engage the crease between the upp d the bottom'flange and the guide tub'e,is curved upwardly from its delivery end to position the major portion of the tube, and .the' portion of the welt strip leading into the tube, above the operator's line of vision so that he will have a clear view of the bottom flange of the shoe at a point closely adjacent to the swing gage and thus, by observa back gage on the work table for guiding the v shoe by engagement with the outer edge of the bottom flange. 4 presser, in addition to the 'presser foot, is also provided, which is adapted to act upon the inner surfaces of the upper and the insole to hold the bottom flange in position between the presser foot and the work table and against the back gage. In order to adapt such a machine to attach a welt to the sloping upper side of the flange by the stitches which secure the upper and-the insole together, the present invention provides novel means for leading a welt strip into position upon the upper side of the bottom flange to which it is to be attached, As illustrated, this means comprises a welt strip guide in the form of a tube the delivery and of which is located in the line of work feed just rearwardly of the presser foot and the work table. The delivery end portion of the illustrated strip guide tube is adapted to fimction also as a swing gage in controlling the swinging of the shoe by the operator for the P pose of presenting the heel and toe portions of the shoe to the sewing instrumentalities. In performing this ing the relation of the flange to the upwardly curving portion of the guide tube, he will be able to keep the shoe crease against the swing gage. even though the latter be obscuredfrom view by the bulge of the shoe upper. The welt guide tube is also curved or oflset toward the rear of the machine to provide ample clearance between the receiving end portion of the tube and the bulge of the upper to insure against any interference by the strip guiding tube with the swingingmovements of the shoe. ,The illustrated guide tube is further provided at its delivery end with a projection or tongue which extends forwardly in the direction of work feed for engagement with the outer edge of the welt strip at a point opposite to the path of the needle where the tongue serves as an edge gage to determinehccurately the widthwise relation of the welt strip to the bottom flange of the shoe at'the point where the strip is being sewn to the flange to constitute the welt of the shoe. "The strip guiding tube is mounted with provision for adjustment transversely of the line of work feed and means is provided for conveniently and accurately effecting such adjustment to vary the position of the guide tube (and the welt edge gage carried thereby) so as to predetermine accurately the extent to which the inner margin of the welt shall overlap the inseam flange and correspondingly the extent to which the outer margin of the welt shall project beyond that flange. 7

In certain of its aspects the present invention is not restricted in its application to the manufacture of shoes in which both the uppers and the insoles have beveled margins since my improved machine is capable of operating upon shoes in which the margin of the upper only is beveled. Neither is the invention restricted in its application to the manufacture of welt shoes, since the strip guide may be employed to lead a wrapping strip instead of a well; strip into position to be secured to the inseam flange, such a wrappi strip to be employed, for example, as an edge covering for a middle or .platform sole in the manufacture of a platform shoe.

The invention will now be described with refmy improved machine;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view, partially in crosssection and partially in perspective, of a completed welt shoe embodying the upper, insole,

and welt assembly shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of a shoe upper, platform sole and wrapping strip assembly parts of which may be stitched together by the use of my machine when fitted with a strip guide and a work table of modified construction;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of a completed platform shoe embodying the assembly of parts shown in Fig. 4.;

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a modified form of strip guide used in the machine when operating upon the assembly of shoe parts shown inFig. 4, the section being livery end of the strip guide;

Fig. 7 is a detail view in end elevation of a 1'. near the demodified form of work table employed in the.

machine when operating upon the -.=-.=-t.. of shoe parts such as that shown in Fig. 4; 4

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the work supporting device, the back gage'and the welt strip guide:

' side and disposed with its beveled face engaging of the machine when fitted as shown in Fig. 1 for operation upon an assembly of shoe parts such as that shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 8 but showing the work in position to be operated u'pon;

Fig. 10 is a side elevational view of the operating parts of the machine showing them in operation upon the work; Fig. 11 is a view similar to Fig. 10 but showing the work supporting and positioningdevices in cross-section on the line XII-XI of Fig. 9;

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of the parts shown in Fig. 10 showing them in operation uponthe work, some of the parts of the machine having loop and moves it into position to be engaged by the rotary hook. The carriers for supporting the needle and the awl are concentric with each other and are arranged so that the needle enters the work from above through a perforation formed by the awl entering from below. Oscillating movements are imparted to the needle and awl through suitable connections from driving shafts (not herein shown). The needle operates in a, fixed vertical plane. The awl is arranged to move laterally while in the work in order'to feed the work between the times of engagement of the needle with the work, one of the levers through which the awl carrier is actuated to move the awl laterally being indicated at 22. The parts just described and the other stitch forming and work feeding devices with their actuating mechanisms are or may be the same been broken away for clearness of illustration;

and p r 2 Fig. 13 is a perspective view ofthe operative parts of the machine takenirom the point of view of the -operator,,and illustrating particularly the clearance provided between the weltstrip guide and the shoe to facilitate the swinging of the shoe to present the heel and toe por tions thereof to the sewing instrumentalities and the manner in which the strip guide functions to engage the shoe upper to assist the operator as those described in detail in United States Letters Patent No. 1,169,909, granted February 1, 1916, upon application of Fred Ashworth.

The illustrated machine is provided with work supporting and guiding devices which are similar in construction and arrangement to those disclosed in the hereinbefore mentioned Ashworth Patent No. 2,221,320, these devices comprising a work support or table 2d, a back gage 26, apresser foot 28, and a presser 38. In addition to these devices the machine is also provided with means including a welt strip guide 32 for leading a welt strip 3t into the path of the needle and the awl, said means together with the operative parts hereinbefore referred to adapting the machine to perform the inseam sewing operation in the manufacture of a welt shoe, such as that disclosed in my pending application already mentioned. Such a shoe, as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings in this application, comprises an insole 38 having its margin beveled at its inner or upper side, an upper 38 he lower margin of which is beveled at its inner the beveled face of the insole margin so as to form what may be termed a feather edged bottom joint or flange on (see Figs. 2 and 3), a welt 42 attached to the upper side of the flange 49 by a lockstltched inseam as which also secures together the margins of the upper and the insole, and an outsole (it (Fig. 3) which is secured by outseam stitches 768 to the welt 42. At

,the time when the inseam is being sewn, the

upper and the insole have been assembled ofi the last with their beveled margins temporarily secured together by means of cement and the leading end of the welt strip has been led by the strip guide 32 into engagement with the upper side of the bottom flange in position to constitute the welt.

The work table 24 projects from the upper end of a block 50 which is secured by means of a bolt 1 52 to a stationary part of the machine frame. As shown, the work table 24 is slotted at 54 to penmit the passage therethrough of the needle and the awl and the table has a beveled work-engaging surface 56 which affords a support for the of the upper and insole asbottom flange 40 sembly.

Mounted upon the work table 24 is the'bock gage 26 which engages the feather edge of the bottom flange 40 to locate the insole and the upper relatively to, and at apoint'opposite thepaths of, the needle and the awl so as to determine how far the inseam stitches shall be spaced inwardly from the edge ofthe bottom flange. In order that the above-described locawork guiding surface at all tion of the inseam stitches 44 may be varied, the back gage 26 is secured to the work table 24 with provision for adjustment transversely of the line of work feed by means of a bolt 58 (Fig. 8) which extends through a transverse slot 60 in the back gage and is threaded into the work table supporting block 50. By loosening the bolt 58 a desired adiustment of the back gagemay be obtained by shifting it toward or from the path of the needle and by tightening the bolt 58 the back gage may be clamped in adjusted position. A gib 62 on the upper side of the work table supporting block 50 flts within a groove 64 in the lower side of the back gage and cooperates with the bolt 58 to maintain the back gage with its times parallel to the direction of work feed. I

The presser foot 28 has a slot 68 formed therein to receive the needle and the awl and it has a lower work-engaging surface which is disposed at an acute angle to the beveled-face 56 of the work table and which bears against the upper.

face of the welt. The presser foot 28 is secured to the free end of a presser foot lever 68. During the greater part of the cycle of operations of the machine the presser foot 28 is held firmly clamped against the welt so that the welt and the margins of the upper and the insole are tightly held between the presser foot and the work table. During the feeding of the work, however, the presser foot is raised so as to offer no resistance to the feeding movement. At the end of each feeding movement the presser foot is moved positively toward the work table a predetermined distance so as firmly to clamp the work. The presser foot remains in work clamping position until the beginning of the next feeding movement' when it is again raised and a cycle of operations is repeated. The means for thus actuating the presser foot 28 is or may be the same as the presser foot actuating mechanism shown and described in the above-mentioned Patent 1,169,909.

The presser 30 engages the inner surfaces of the upper and insole assembly near the temporarily secured marginal portions thereof and cooperates with the work table 24 and the presser foot 28 to hold the bottom flange 40 in position for the passage of the awl and the needle there through. As shown, the presser 30 is formed as a disk having conical work engaging surfaces and it is rotatably mounted on the free end of a horn in which is pivotally supported in the machine and which is operated to cause the presser disk to grip and release the work intermittently during the sewing operation in order that the work may be fed more easily through the machine. The means for supporting and eperating the horn H! are or may be the same as the corresponding means described in detail in Patent 2,221,320. The welt strip guide 32 consists of a tube of a partially collapsed or flattened formation, the

interior of which corresponds in cross-sectional contour to that of the welt strip 34 and the tube is mounted in the machine so that its deheel and toe portlons'therof to the sewing instrumentalities.

. while the back gage 28 determines the position of 1 heel if theflange is held against the back gage,

it nevertheless requires considerable skill on the part of the operator to manipulate the shoe as livery end is located just rearwardly of the presserlythe swinging of the shoe in presenting the 76.

the seam with respect to the edges of the bottom flange of the shoe and will insure that the seam will be sewn a uniform distance from the edges in ,all' portions of the shoe except at the toeand the heel and toe portions are being operated upon to insure that theseam will be sewn in the desired relation to the edges of the flange in those portions of the shoe, If, for example, the shoe is swung too quickly by the operator, the stitches will be sewn too close to the inner edge of the bottom flange, while, if the shoe is swung too slowly, the stitches will be sewn too close to the outeredge of the flange. To insure that even an inexpert operator will be able to swing the shoe so that the stitches will be uniformly spaced from the edges of the bottom flange at the heel and toe portions of the shoe, the portion 12 of the delivery endof the welt strip guide 32 which is nearest to the operator is constructed and arranged to engage the crease 14 between the upper and the bottom flange, as indicated in Fig. 13, to serve as a swing gage. The ,operator by keeping the crease againstthe swing gage 12 during the entire swinging movement of the shoe will cause the shoe to be positioned by the joint action of the swing gage 12 and the back gage 26 in the proper lengthwise angular relation to the direction of movement of the work feeding devices to insure the sewing of the seam at the desired uniform distance from the edge of the bottom flange at the heel and at the toe of the shoe. As also indicated in Fig. 13, however, the bulge of the upper of the shoe is quite likely to obscure more or less the operator's view of the swing gage where the latter rides in the crease l4 and, in order to assist the operator in keeping the shoe against the swing gage, the strip guide tube 32 is curved upwardly from itsdelivery end so that the major portion of the tube, and the portion of the welt strip leading into the tube, are located above the operator's line of vision. This insures that the operator will have a clear view of that portion of the bottom flange which is about to be fed beneath the swing gage and thus, although he may be unable to see the acting edge of the swing gage, he can easily keep When other portions of the shoe are being operated upon, for example, the shank portion of the shoe, the back gage 26 alone will serve adequately to guide the shoe and the gaging portion 12 0f the welt strip guide will not perform any workguiding flmction. At such times the upper,

being unsupported interiorly except by the narrow presser disk 30, will yield inwardly as it is being crowded against the strip guide so that the latter will not interfere with the feedin of the, work. The heel portion of the upper is ordinarily reinforced by means of a counter stiffener and a toe stifi'ener is usually employed at the toe of the upper and these portions of the upper ar .thus made relatively stiif or unyielding and consequently will hold their shape sufliciently to cooperate with the swing gage 12 in con- It should be understood that swinging of the shoe.

The strip guide tube 32 is further provided at its delivery end with a projection or tongue 18 which extends forwardly in the direction of work feed for engagement with the outer edge of the welt strip at a point opposite the path of the v needle so that the tongue 18 will'serve as a gage to determine accuratelythe widthwise relation of the welt strip to the bottom flange at the point where the strip is being sewed to the inseam flange to constitute the welt of the shoe.

The welt strip guide 32 has a depending shank portion I9 which is secured by means of screws 80 to a post 82 (Fig. 1) rising from a base 84 which, in turn, is secured by means of screws 86 to a lug 88 formed on the frame of the machine. The screws 80 extend through vertically elongated slots 90 inthe shank 19 of the guide tube, the slots 90 permitting the guide tube to be adjusted initially at the proper elevation'in the machine. The screws 86 extend through horizontal elongated slots 92 in the base 84. the arrangement being such thatby loosening the screws 86 the guide tube may be adjusted transswing of the shoe to insure that the inseam flange will be presented to the machine so that the 'inseam will be sewn parallel to the edge of the inseam flange at the heel and toe of the shoe as well as in the other portions of the shoe. When the shoe is being swung, the curvature of the welt strip guide 32 toward the rear of the machine provides clearance for the bulge of the shoe upper, as above described, thus insuring that the strip guide will not interfere with the movement of the shoe. After the inseam has been sewn entirely around the shoe, the welt, which has been attached to the shoe by the inseam stitches, is severed from the welt strip. The shoe is then completed by the attachment of the outsole 44 to the welt 42 by means of the outseam stitches 48, as shown inFig. 3.

Instead of attaching a welt strip to the upper 38, it may be desired to attach a wrapping strip or edge binding strip 420 to the upper, as indicated in'Fig. 4, to serve as an edge covering for a sole, such as a platform sole 350, in the manufacture' of a platform shoe of'the type illustrated versely of the direction of work feed to vary the extent to which the welt is to overlap the bottom flange of the shoe and correspondi y the extent to which the welt is to extend outwardly beyond the bottom flange. This adjustment may be conveniently and accurately effected by turning a screw 94 which extends through a slot 96 in 9. lug 98 depending from the base 84 and is threaded into the lug 88 on the frame of the machine, the screw 94 being restrained from moving longitudinally in the lug 98 by means of collars Hill which are secured to the screw 94 in positions to engage opposite faces of the lug S8.

The machine as above described-is particularly adapted for operation upon an upper and an inposition shown in Fig. 11 to secure these mar:- gins permanently together by means of inseam stitches and to attach a portion of a welt strip to the bottom flange formed by these margins.

' when being operated upon inthe machine, the

upper and insole assembly is positioned as indicated in Figs. 9 to 13, inclusive, the presser engaging the irmer surface of the upper 38 and the insole 36 and holding the bottom flange Q0;

in Fig. 5, wherein the wrapping strip 420 is shown as having been wrapped over the edge and secured, as by means of cement, to the lower marginal surface of the platform sole, and an outsole 460 is shown as having been attached'by means of cement to the bottom of the shoe. The wrapping strip 420 is substantially wider than the welt strip sole the margins of which have been beveled and temporarily secured by cement in the overlying flange and the presser foot and with the outer edge of the welt strip against the welt edge gage l8. As the work is being fed through the ma chine by the lateral movements of the awl, the location of the inseam in the bottom flange is determined by means of the back gage 28 while the welt strip 42 is led into the paths of the awl and the needle by means of thewelt strip guide 32, the position of the welt strip at the point where it is being attached to the bottom flange being determined by the welt edge gage 18. When the shoe is being swung to enable the sewing opand, for the purpose of leading the wide wrapping strip into position for attachment to the upper and the platform sole, a modified form of strip guide'320 (Fig. 6) may be employed comprising a tube of the longitudinally folded or doubled-over formation indicated in cross-section in that fi ure. Such a folded formation of the strip guiding tube adapts the tube to guide the strip in a. correspondingly folded or doubled-over condition into position for attachment to the shoe and enables the strip guide to be received within the narrow space between the work and the bearings for the needle and awl carriers so as to deliver the strip in the desired closely adjacent relation to the presser foot and the work table. As shown, the lower longitudinal edge 322 of the guide tube 320 projects beyond the upper longitudinal edge 324 thereof and the guide is positioned transversely in the machine so that the lower marginal portion or fold of the wrapping strip will be led into the path of the needle but the upper marginal portion or fold" of the strip will be led into a position clear of the needle path. This will insure that only that marginal portion of the strip which .point where it is being stitched to the shoe. The unattached portion of the strip is then wrapped around the platform sole 360 as indicated in" Fig. 5. To provide-for effectively guiding the upper and platform sole assembly in the machine" during the sewing of the strip attaching seam, itmay be found desirable to employ a modified fo m' of work support or tablesuch as that shown at 240 in Fig. '1 wherein a back gage 260, for guidingthe work by engagement with the edge of the sole,

is formed as an integral part of the work table.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a sewing machine for uniting the edge portions of an upper and a sole assembled without the support of a last and securing a welt to the outer marginal face of the upper, in combina tion, a work support for engagement with the outer marginal face of the sole, a presser foot for engagement with the outer face of the welt, stitch forming and work feeding devices movable through the portion of the work between said work support and said presser foot, a back gage for guiding the work by engagement with the edge of the sole, a presser arranged to act upon the inner surfaces of the upper and the sole to hold the edge of the sole against said back gage, a guide tube constructed and arranged to lead a strip of welting into the path of the stitch forming and work feeding devices, said tube being curved from its delivery end upwardly and rearwardly with respect to the direction of work feed and having its receiving end ofiset toward the rear of the machine to afford clearance for the Swinging of the shoe as its toe and heel portions are being operated upon, and means for engaging the edge of the welting strip at a point spaced beyond the delivery end of said tube to position the strip widthwise with respect to the stitch forming point.

2. In a sewing machine for uniting the edge portions of an upper and a sole assembled d the last and securing a welt to the outer marginal face of the upper, in combination, a work support for engagement with the outer marginal face of the sole, a presser foot for engagement with the outer face of the welt, stitch forming and work feeding devices movable through the portion of the work between said work support and said presser foot, a back gage for guiding the work by engagement with the edge of the sole, a presser arranged to act upon the inner surfaces of the upper and the sole to hold the edge of the sole against said back gage, a guide constructed and arranged to lead a strip of welting into position to be secured to the upper and the insole to constitute a welt, said guide being adjustable vertically and also horizontally in directions transverse to the line of work feed, and means for adjusting said guide horizontally.

it is being secured to the said parts to constitute a welt.

4. In a sewing machine for uniting the alined beveled edges of an upper and an insole and securing a welt to the outer marginal face of the upper, in combination, a work support for engagement with the outer marginal face of the insole, a presser foot for engagement with the outer face of the welt, stitch forming and work feeding devices movable through the portion of the work between said work support" and said presser foot, a back gage on said work support for guiding the work by engagement with the edges of the insole and the upper, a presser arranged to act upon the inner surfaces of the upper and the insole to hold the edges ofth'e upper and the insole against said back gage, a guide tube through which a welt strip is led into the path of 3. In a sewing machine for uniting the alined the edges of the insole and the upper, a presser arranged to act upon the inner surfaces of the upper and the insole to hold the edges of the upper and the insole against said back gage, means located in the line of work feed rear- Y wardly of said work support and said presser foot for directing a welt strip into the path of the stitch forming and work feeding devices, and

(means for engaging the outer edge of the welt strip at a point opposite the point of operation of the said devices'upon the work to locate the strip relatively to the upper and the insole while beveledmargins of an upper and an insole, and

securing a welt to the upper face of said flange, in combination, a work support for engagement with the lower marginal .face of said flange, a presser foot for engagement with the outer face of the welt, stitch forming and work feeding devices,

movable through said flange and said welt, a

presser arranged to act upon the inner surfaces of the upper and the insole to hold'said flange in position to be operated upon, and means located in the line of work feed and rearwardly of said work support for directing a welt strip into the path of said stitch forming and work feeding devices, said means comprising a strip guiding tube having a portion at its delivery end shaped to engage the upper near the flange to serve as a gage to assist in guiding the shoe through the machine, said tube being curved from its delivery end upwardly and rearwardly with respect to the direction of work feed to enable the operator to have a clear view of said'flange in the immediate vicinity of said delivery end portion of said tube.

6. In a machine for sewing an inseam through I upper and the insole to hold said margins in position to be operated upon, and means located in the line of work feed and rearwardly of-said work support for directing a weltstrip into the path of said stitch forming and work feeding devices, said means comprising a/strip guiding tube curved from its delivery end upwardly and rearwardy with respect to the direction of work feed, the rear portion of said tube being offset laterally toward the rear of the machine to insure clearance between the work and said tube.

7. In a sewing machine foruniting the edge portions of an upper and a sole assembled without the support of a last and securing a welt to the outer marginal face oi the upper,in combination, a work'support for engagement with the outer marginal face of the sole, a back gage for guiding the work by engagement with the edge of the sole, 9. presser foot for engagement with the outer faceof the welt, stitch forming and work feeding devices movable through the portion of the work between said work support and said presser foot, 8. presser arranged to act upon the inner surfaces of the upper and the sole to hold the edge of the sole against said back gage, a welt strip guide constructed and arranged to lead a strip of welting between the presser foot and the outer marginal face of the upper into position to be secured to the upper and the sole to constitute a, welt, and means on said welt strip guide for coacting with said back gage to determine the lengthwise angular relation of the sole edge to the direction of movement of the work feeding devices to control the swinging of the work during operations upon the heel and portions thereof.

KARL A. S'I'RI'ITER. 

